Probe 7, Over and Out
"Probe 7, Over and Out" is an episode of the The Twilight Zone. Episode Details Opening Narration "One Colonel Cook, a traveler in space. He's landed on a remote planet several million miles from his point of departure. He can make an inventory of his plight by just one 360-degree movement of head and eyes. Colonel Cook has been set adrift in an ocean of space in a metal lifeboat that has been scorched and destroyed and will never fly again. He survived the crash but his ordeal is yet to begin. Now he must give battle to loneliness. Now Colonel Cook must meet the unknown. It's a small planet set deep in space. But for Colonel Cook, it's the Twilight Zone." Episode Summary Astronaut Cook crash lands on a strange planet with gravity and atmospheric conditions similar to those on his home world. Most of his equipment is put out of commission by the crash and he cannot repair it due to a broken arm and lack of resources. Shortly afterwards, he learns that his home world has embarked on a catastrophic nuclear war. Eventually he finds a woman from another species who tells him her name is Norda. They cannot understand each other's language, but she communicates through sketches drawn in the sand and by pantomime that she is also stranded; her planet had left its orbit and she had survived. In his last transmission, Cook's superior back home named General Larrabee tells him that there may be no survivors when the war is over, so he can expect no rescue, and comments on how he hopes his new world is more peaceful. After that, Cook decides to explore the planet and is joined by Norda. Together, they embark for a more fertile area, which Cook describes as looking like a "garden". He fully introduces himself as "Adam Cook" and Norda gives her full name as "Norda Eve". Adam and Eve begin a new life on this planet she calls "Irth", which Adam pronounces as Earth. At this point she even offers him a "seppla", which appears to be a very familiar "forbidden fruit". As they venture further, Rod Serling narrates that even he presumes that the place they are heading to is Eden. Closing Narration "Do you know these people? Names familiar, are they? They lived a long time ago. Perhaps they're part fable, perhaps they're part fantasy. And perhaps the place they're walking to now is not really called 'Eden.' We offer it only as a presumption. This has been the Twilight Zone." Preview for Next Week's Story Next on Twilight Zone, three national guardsmen on a maneuver traveling across the same ground formerly occupied by George Custer in an outfit called the 7th Cavalry. Time and its infinite complexity meshes in what evolves as a stunningly different story about soldiers and Indians suspended in limbo between then and now. On Twilight Zone next, "The 7th Is Made Up of Phantoms". Response and Analysis *A shaggy God story, "Probe 7, Over and Out" is a modern tale of Adam and Eve. *A similar episode was made in the 2002 revival series, called Sanctuary. Trivia "Probe 7, Over and Out" was intended to air a week after the premiere of "Night Call," which was scheduled for Friday, November 22, 1963 — the previous episode, "Uncle Simon," having aired a week earlier on November 15. Hours before "Night Call" was to air though, President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas. Thus it was rescheduled, as were all of the other network shows. As a result, "Probe 7, Over and Out" immediately follows "Uncle Simon" in original broadcast order. "Night Call" was eventually broadcast on February 7, 1964. Production Companies *Cayuga Productions *Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) (in association with) Distributors *Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) (1959) (USA) (TV) (original airing) Memorable Quotes External Links *http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0734615/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1